Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

Banner Co. (NASDAQ:BANR) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $73.00 and last traded at $72.77, with a volume of 1965 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $65.18.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. Banner’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on BANR shares. Janney Montgomery Scott cut Banner from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Raymond James increased their target price on Banner from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of Banner in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Banner from $60.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $67.00 price objective on Banner in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.60.

Banner Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.64 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.09.

Banner (NASDAQ:BANR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $213.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $152.95 million. Banner had a return on equity of 10.22% and a net margin of 20.28%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Banner Co. will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Banner

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of Banner during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,025,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Banner by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 717,058 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,419,000 after buying an additional 25,525 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Banner during the 1st quarter valued at about $247,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Banner during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,931,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Banner by 35.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 28,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,383,000 after buying an additional 7,467 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.33% of the company’s stock.

About Banner

Banner Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Banner Bank that engages in the provision of commercial banking and financial products and services to individuals, businesses, and public sector entities in the United States. It accepts various deposit instruments, including interest-bearing and non-interest-bearing checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, regular savings accounts, and certificates of deposit, as well as treasury management services and retirement savings plans.